Sophie Drear never expected to fall in love. But over a summer in Maine, she does: with the dazzling flowers and the towering hedge maze of Lilymoor House.
But then, a door appears. Never in the same place twice. Leading only to a dishevelled garden, and a beguiling thundercloud of a man, confined inside.
Battling with the vines – just as much as she is with Lilymoor’s owner’s two inconveniently handsome nephews – Sophie knows that she is the only person who can help Lilymoor bloom again. But when you’re stuck between the men on the outside, and the one trapped within, can the seeds of romance bloom into something more…?
Spoilers.
If I knew I was going to cry through the whole damn thing, I wouldn’t’ve read it at night and then written up this review at 11:30pm.
I hate trigger warnings. I don’t use them as an author, and never put them in my books. But I’m beginning to wish other books had them. My trigger is death. Death of babies, children, partners, friends, parents. Good people. Bad guys, pft! Kill ’em off. But good guys, I’m bawling like a freakin’ baby.
Sophie meets Harriet in high school and the become instant BFFs. They both want to visit Lilymoor house and do so before they head off for college. Harriet vows they should come back in ten years when the house and gardens celebrate their 200th anniversary. They pinkie swear promise, and Sophie keeps her promises.
The problem is, Harriet dies eleven months before the anniversary. It’s Sophie’s recounting of her friendship with Harrie, and the time approaching her illness and death, the fiance’s sudden engagement at the same time that had me bawling. On a side note: that freakin’ fiance got engaged 11 freakin’ months after Harrie died. That meant he “fell in love” pretty freakin’ quick in order to get engaged so freakin’ quick. Cheating c*nt! Meanwhile, Sophie’s still clinging to her pain, quashing it down and out of sight.
Eventually, the tears do come, during her mysterious meetings wih Cyrus. She finally reveals little pieces of her pain to him and slowly heals through talking to him. He doesn’t judge, he doesn’t use words, just lets her talk and “sees her”.
Sounds like the perfect guy, right?
Aren’t they always in an Ashley Posten book! (A Novel Love Story, Sounds Like Love, Seven Year Slip, Dead Romantics)
My point being, if this book had trigger warnings of death, as several of her books do, I wouldn’t’ve read them. It’s hard to read a lightweight book that’s considered romantic comedy and have death throughout. So regardless of me sobbing like a baby, when her next book’s out I’ll read that one too, and the one after, and the one after.
I gave this book 8/10
Murder By Cheesecake by Rachel Ekstrom Courage
When Dorothy’s obnoxious date is found dead in a hotel freezer, it not only ruins a gorgeous cheesecake but threatens the elaborate St. Olaf-themed wedding Rose is hosting.
Things are heating up, and not just because of Blanche’s hot flashes. Rose’s cousin is eloping to Miami, and Rose is playing host. If she can’t balance the groom’s family’s snobbery against the traditional St. Olaf wedding week guidelines, her hometown may never accept her cousin again!
Dorothy quickly realizes she needs a date with whom she can exchange wedding-related wisecracks. Turning to a newfangled VHS dating service, she believes she’s found the ideal conversationalist. Unfortunately, what looks good on TV can actually be a total jerk in real life. It seems she’ll just have to enjoy the company of Sophia, Blanche, and whomever Blanche has targeted for a hookup.
As the Girls all pitch in, Rose is thrilled that the tea-and-fish-themed kickoff event is perfect, not a herring out of place. That is until Dorothy’s date is found dead-face-planted in an otherwise scrumptious-looking cheesecake. With every guest a suspect (especially Dorothy) and a marriage on the line, the four besties must ID the real killer, get the should-be-happy couple down the aisle, and make sure nobody from St. Olaf gets lost in the wilds of Miami. It’s up to the Golden Girls to sleuth out a way for friendship and love to win the day!
I was hoping this would have been good, but for me, it was a disappointing, weak story with references to Nancy Drew, Jessica Fletcher and Jackie Collins. And I had waited since 2025 for this book from my local library.
The book centres around Rose planning a St. Olaf wedding for her niece/cousin. It’s confusing, but explained in usual absentminded Rose style, so this part of the book was boring as hell. The b-story was the discovery of a body belonging to a man Dorothy had gone on one date with. Dorothy is arrested, Rose’s numerous St. Olaf relatives complain about it, the groom’s parents take over the wedding because it’s at their hotel, and the girls turn Nancy Drew/Jessica Fletcher, while reading Lucky by Jackie Collins.
Turns out, the dude’s not dead…
There was also an editing issue on pages 3 and 4.
On 3, she has Dorothy pouring herself a cup of coffee before joining the girls at the kitchen table.
Then, on page 4, she has Dorothy joining the girls at the table.
What now!
Dorothy was already at the table, but the author, and multiple editors, had her joining them twice. In two pages.
Oi!
Nowhere near like the show, I have no idea how it was a NY Times bestseller.
I gave it a 6/10 and that’s generous.